The pressures to compete in a global economy force businesses to work collaboratively. While the rewards for partnering can be greater in value than those which a firm could accomplish independently, many alliances fail, which suggests a lack of the necessary knowledge and skills to establish a successful partnership. Strategic Alliances and Marketing Partnerships will help you to understand how partnerships function and how you can manage them more effectively and efficiently. Based on solid research and dealing with key topics such as supply chain management, marketing channels and relationship management, it identifies the factors that determine partnering excellence. Whatever the nature of the relationship -outsourcing, strategic alliances or co-manufacturing-there are eight distinctive relationship types identified by the authors to help managers optimize business-to-business partnerships. With case studies from prominent global organizations such as Wal-Mart, Toyota, General Motors and Dell, Strategic Alliances and Marketing Partnerships with help you to understand the problems that affect partnering and make effective decisions to improve both the relationship and productivity. According to a recent study, most companies surveyed nowadays recognize that alliances are of very high importance to the realization of their strategic objectives. However, the dramatically high failure rates of business partnering-estimated at over 50 per cent-suggests that companies often lack the skills and knowledge to determine the best strategic fit, negotiate win-win agreements, align organizational cultures and get people to work together productively. Based on ground-breaking research Strategic Alliances and Marketing Partnerships identifies the key factors that determine partnering excellence and will help you to optimize your business-to-business partnerships. It will help you to understand how partnerships function and how you can manage them more effectively and efficiently- whaterver the nature of the relationship. Using case studies it explores key topics including: The strategic value of partnering The evolution of supply chain networks, marketing channels and strategic alliances The obstacles and drives of successful partnerships Relationship marketing Understanding partnership and alliance dynamics Evaluating partnership performance Strategic Alliances and Marketing Partnerships also includes eight distinctive relationship types, defined by the authors, to help you to identify and assess the nature of you own partnerships, maximize their value and ensure their success. About The Author Richard Gibbs is a recognized expert in marketing channels and has held senior positions in major companies including Xerox and Novell Inc. His PhD from the University of Gloucester shire followed an MBA from Henley Management College, and he continues to conduct research into how firms gain competitive advantage through marketing partnerships. Andrew Humphries is currently CEO of SCCI Ltd which specializes in measuring commercial relationship performance. Following a career in the UK Royal Air Force as Head of Defence Aviation Logistics, he gained a PhD from Stanfield School of Management and an MBA from the Open University. Table of Content Introduction Placing a value on your key commercial partnerships The Business of PartneringA crisis in management Diminishing sources of competitive advantage From product-base competition to knowledge-base advantage Extending the boundaries of the firm The strategic value of partnering Partnering and competing supply chains The problems of understanding your partners The Evolution of Partnership-Driven Business Strategies Introduction The development of supply chain management Supply chain networks Strategic alliances Marketing channels Managing buy-sell relationships Conclusion The Obstacles and drivers of Successful Partnerships Introduction Leveraging mutual investments Learning from each other Governance The influence of leadership and control mechanisms Understanding partnership performance Proactive relationship management Summary Relationship Marketing: a ?New-Old? Theory of Business Relationships Marketing foundations Relationship marketing rediscovered Collaborate or fail From power management to relationship management The relationship business Modelling the marketing relationship Managing partnership value Building relationship management capabilities Summary Understanding Partnership and Alliance Dynamics Introduction A ?new economic? view of partnerships Partnerships as spiral dynamics Finding the measure of partnership performance Conclusion Working Hard at the ?Soft? Factors Introduction Evaluating partnership performance Opportunities and challenges created through Collaborative innovation Opportunities and challenges created through partnership quality Opportunities and challenges of creating value The model of partnership performance Summary The Gibbs+Humphries Partnership Types Introduction Evangelists Stable pragmatists Rebellious teenagers Evolving pessimists Captive sharks Cherry pickers No can dos Deserters Summary Making Partnerships and Alliances Work for you Management implications Determining the right partnership type Partnership types and market development Relationship management and the Gibbs-Humphries Partnership types The Gibbs-Humphries partnership types and marketing Conclusion Further reading Index